Persona 4 - The Progeny
by DigiFox0
Summary: Years later, a sinister plot unfurls once again in Inaba. With the Investigation Team retired, it is up to their children to take up the mantle and save the world from Shadows once again. Future Fic. OC. Background Shipping. Rated T for themes, language and more. Rating subject to change.
1. Chapter 1 - History Repeats

Persona 4- The Progeny

Chapter 1 – History Repeats

A/N: So yeah, more Persona Related stuff. This'll probably be the longest thing I've written out since I'm still not 100% on how it's going to work XD I saw a similar fic somewhere else on the site (And will now be forever called a ripoff merchant but there you go). Apologies on the slow start. Beginnings are really hard for me XD Hopefully this i'll properly get my head around it soon and then it'll start picking up steam :D Regardless, Enjoy :)

xxx

_*BeepBeepBeepBeepBeepBe-*_

The cacophony of noise would never be welcoming. It served its purpose though and once it did, a slender arm reached from within the covers of a nearby bed to flick the switch on the alarm clock.

_*CLICK*_

The girl, with some effort, extricated herself from the tangled mess of bedsheets she managed to get herself into in her sleep, somehow. She really had to figure out why she did that…

"Hikari! Breakfast!" a female voice came from outside of the girl's room, dulled by the door.

'Mom's cooking? Ugh…'

"Okay!" the sleepy girl, Hikari, yelled back to the voice. "Just let me wash up!"

She snapped on the light switch and was immediately blinded by the bulb (Which was apparently brighter than a million suns or something). After regaining her eyesight, she sat down in front of a mirror and started to apply makeup to her heart-shaped face. People had described her as pretty at school (She didn't see it, but then she was a teenage girl, of course she had self esteem problems). Long, auburn hair fell over her pallid face and obscured her grey eyes slightly. Her long fingers brushed her bangs out of her face and reached for a brush.

"Hikari!" a young voice exploded along with a series of sharp bangs on her bedroom door.

"You don't have to yell" the girl said to the voice seemingly trying to bust it's way into the room.

"Mom says to hurry up!"

"Tell her I'm almost done, OK, Tatsuya?"

And that was true, all that was left was her school uniform, neatly ironed and washed. As she put it over her slender frame, she couldn't help but feel scared. She wasn't used to the Yasogami High uniform yet. It was still so raw for her.

"Hikari, I won't tell you again!" The female voice from earlier echoed up the stairs.

"Coming!" The high schooler bellowed as she grabbed her bag and made her way out of her room. Not without muttering "Jeez, give me a second, will you?" under her breath.

When she arrived at the dining table that sat in the middle of a small kitchen, she noticed a place had already been set for her. Some fairly watery eggs sat on some somewhat stale toast. To the left of the plate was the girl's brother, already digging in to his meagre offering as if it was his first meal in years. Opposite him, her mother, looking at her expectantly. Directly across from the food, was an empty chair.

"Where's dad?" Hikari asked her mother.

"He had to get in extra early. He wants everything to be perfect for his first day on the job" the older woman giggled slightly as she replied. "Come on, Hikari, eat up or you'll be late" she said, suddenly snapping back in to mother-mode.

"Okay" Hikari sighed. She'd just have to eat it. In her mother's defence, she'd got a lot better at cooking over the years. She just always preferred her Dad's.

"You excited to start your first day at Yasogami?" Her mother asked as Hikari put some of the food in her mouth (Which did nothing to excite the palate)

"Kinda" she replied. "I'm really nervous though… How did you handle it, mom?"

"Well… I met your dad" her mother blushed as she confessed. "He was a really good Senpai, helped me through a lot of the problems I had with transferring schools and stuff. If I were you though, I wouldn't change anything" she smiled "Ryu-kun is going to be there, so you'll have someone to talk to"

The Ryu that she referred to was Hikari's childhood friend. Apparently, their parents were friends so it was only natural they'd grow up together. She always thought he was sweet, if a little impetuous and quick to anger. His heart was always in the right place though. There was this one time when they were kids that he tried to fight a boy that told Hikari she was ugly. He got beat up pretty bad, but it was still a nice gesture.

"Yeah, I guess. I hope we're in the same class and stuff…" Hikari said, poking at what remained of her breakfast.

"What about you, Tatsu?" Her mother asked, turning her attention to her son "You looking forward to going back to school?"

"No! Can I go to a new school like Hikari is?"

"No, honey, not until you're a little older" His mother bargained with him, trying to appease the child.

"Man… Suki-chan's gonna tease me again…"

It was at that point that Hikari's phone started buzzing. She only had four numbers in her phone, so she had a pretty good idea who it would be. Sure enough…

"Hey

Sorry I'm not there to see you off, but have a great day at school, sweetheart

Love Dad x"

That message meant a lot to her. Her dad seemed to command some kind of crazy aura that could make anyone feel better, even if he wasn't even in the room. It was one of those times she was proud (and relived) she had such a great father.

"Come on, Kari, you'll be late, get going" her mother enthused.

The older woman wasn't what one would call a traditional mother. She was gorgeous, bright and bubbly, unlike other mothers in Inaba. She always did her best to lighten the mood and look out for everyone in her care. She was popular in the neighbourhood too, thought that might have something to do with her former career as superstar idol Risette. Hikari sometimes felt jealous of her mother, Rise, but it was fleeting. They always had a good time together, and she never failed to help Hikari through difficult times.

She couldn't ask for better parents.

Rise moved to clean up after Hikari so she could get out the door, but her daughter noticed she had trouble standing due to the 6 month old baby growing inside her. She almost toppled over whenever she stood.

"I got it, Mom, just get some rest. I'll see you later"

Hikari gave her mother a quick kiss before dropping her plate in the sink and heading out the door to face her new school… A terrifying quest. Hikari had a secret weapon however.

Her Aunt Naoto had given her a pair of high quality headphones for her birthday last year, and they were perfect for the walks to school. She could drown out the noise from other students, hide behind her hair and block out the world. Music was her saviour. It had gotten her out of countless awkward social situations and also given her something to focus on besides schoolwork. She blamed her mother for this particular hobby. She put on some music from some English band she'd heard about on the internet as she walked along the floodplain towards Yasogami High.

As simply drunk in her surroundings and listened to the rock music currently bombarding her ears, she saw a man with a sandwich board across his chest with the words "THE END COMES" hastily painted onto it. She paid him no mind, there were always loads of them in the city, so she was used to this. Among him were droves of Yasogami students, some new, some old. A few looked like they were really lost, whereas others were just laughing and joking with one another.

By the end of the next track in the playlist, she felt someone clap her back from behind, almost knocking the expensive headphones off her head in the process.

"Hey, Kari-tan! How loud you have those things, I was yelling for ages" The interrupter, it turned out, was Ryu.

"You must have looked really stupid"

"Since when did I care about that?"

The boy puffed out his chest and looked at his friend with pride, and she had to giggle a little at his bravado. He was kind of dorky looking, his shirt was untucked, his light brown hair was tousled and his glasses were askew (Probably from the running). He didn't miss a step as he walked in time with the fairly quick paced Hikari.

"When did you become so athletic?"

"Noticed my bulging muscles did you?" He said, flexing.

"No! I didn't mean like that I ju- I meant that-"

"Relax, I know what you meant" Said Ryu. He knew how to handle his somewhat awkward friend. "I was working out all through the break. Mom said that it'll help me in the long run. Dad said that it'd help me get girls" he laughed, and she joined him. That did sound like her Aunt Chie and Uncle Yosuke.

"So what class are you in?" he asked once their shared joke was over.

"Um… Hang on…" she said before leafing through her bag. Underneath her books, pens and all the other stuff she thought she might need, she found her class assignment. "Class 1-2" she answered after scanning the list for her name.

"Cool! We're in the same class"

"Oh great, another year with you…" she joked. She was relived however, that someone she knew would be there. It would make life a lot easier.

"Madam, you wound me!"

"You sounded just like your dad then" she said, bursting into laughter

"It's not that funny…" he said, genuinely hurt by her comment.

"Oh come on, it was"

Ryu just pouted.

"I'll buy you some steak after school to say sorry, alright?"

"You better…"

Just like his mother, the quickest way to his heart was meat…

xxx

As Hikari sat in her new classroom, she was surrounded by people, most of them new. Some of them she recognised from Middle School but the majority had come from one of the other schools around Inaba. There were only about 3 other schools however, so she'd probably at least seen them. That did nothing to belay her worries. What happened next however, did.

The bell rang and the students all took their seats. Moments after that, a man dressed in a plain white shirt and black slacks entered. He was in his mid-twenties, but moved with such confidence across the room, one could easily mistake him for a thirty year old. Perhaps most striking though, was the grey hair that adorned his head, and the matching grey eyes that scanned the room.

"Hello everyone, welcome to Yasogami High. I'm Narukami-sensei and I'll be your homeroom tutor for the next year. I hope we all get along" He smiled.

Some rumblings went on through the class for a moment, which the teacher seemed to let slide. Some of the girls were saying things like "He's so hot!" whereas the guys weren't saying much at all. Except for Ryu, who leant over to Hikari.

"Did you know your dad would be our homeroom teacher?"

"He never said anything" Hikari said, just as shocked as Ryu to see her father, Yu Narukami, standing in front of her, ready to fill her mind with knowledge.

"Settle down, guys. It's registration today, so we're going to spend the time getting to know one another, alright?"

The general consensus from around the room seemed to agree with him. Narukami picked up a piece of paper which Hikari assumed to be the register and read the first name on it.

"Aoi Hinata?" he asked, projecting his voice across the whole room.

A boy near the back stood up to address his teacher.

"Yes Sensei?" he said, he looked terrified. Apparently, Narukami picked up on this.

"It's alright, Aoi. Why don't you tell everyone a little about yourself?"

"U-Um… I'm Aoi Hinata. I really like soccer and reading. I hope we all get along." The boy said. It was the most clichéd answer ever, but it was still an answer

"That's great Aoi, you can sit down now" Narukami smiled at the boy and he sat down, relived.

Narukami read out more names and one by one, each student stood up to introduce themselves to the class.

"Ryu Hanamura?" he eventually called.

"Yes Sensei?" Ryu said, already on his feet.

"Care to tell us about you?"

"Yes Sensei! I'm Ryu Hanamura. I really like Kendo and drawing and I hope to be a police officer one day"

"Thanks, Ryu" Narukami laughed "I appreciate the enthusiasm"

"Thank you Sensei" Ryu said, in a militaristic fashion before sitting back down.

A few more names were read off before it got to the point that Hikari was dreading.

"Hikari Narukami?"

Hikari stood up slowly, her knees almost knocking together as she did so.

"U-um… H-hello. I'm, um, Hikari Narukami… Um… I like music, I guess, and… um… I can sing a bit too. I-I hope we can all be friends…"

"Thanks, Hikari" Narukami-sensei smiled as she sat back down faster than a speeding bullet. Before the teacher could continue, there was mumblings again.

"Wait, is that Sensei's daughter?"

"She's _that_ Hikari Narukami? I thought it was just a coincidence?"

"Risette is her mother right?"

Narukami-sensei simply cleared his throat and the mumbling ceased. He then read out another name from the register and a giant of a boy stood up. Hikari simply buried her head into her arms and felt like playing in traffic…

xxx

_Meanwhile_

"Well? Do the people know?"

"Not yet… Soon they will"

"If they won't help us, they will be destroyed in the end"

"Of course, brother. For now, spread the fear. Continue to tell them of Her coming"

"Yes, brother. What of Gehanna?"

"It is still feeding. Continue to spread the word and I will keep you updated of its progress."

"By your order"

"One last thing, brother?"

"Yes?"

"Detective Dojima"

"What of it?"

"Deal with her"

"By your order"


	2. Chapter 2 - Noli Incarnatum

Persona 4- The Progeny

Chapter 2 – Noli Incarnatum

A/N: Just think I should elucidate my structure for this thing to new readers of mine or whatever :) Basically, chapters will be shorter than a lot of others (Like no more than 3000 words per chapter) simply because I work better in short controlled bursts rather than marathons. (I mean, _this_ is the exception but still XD) Also, I only have so much time in a day XD However, chapters will come out on a very regular basis (Like maybe 2 or 3 a week if I'm going at a good clip) because I have virtually no life XD With that out of the way, thanks for the feedback from people, it's really appreciated :) I'm doing this to become a better writer and I'm the first to admit that I have weak points XD Hope you'll stick through the rough patches to the end of this thing :D Regardless, Enjoy :)

xxx

Hikari wasn't particularly enjoying her first day at high school. She stuttered in front of the entire class, for one, and now she was eating a fairly piss-poor lunch. If her Dad were at home, then it'd be really tasty… Hopefully he'd make dinner tonight so that she wouldn't have to endure three of Mom's meals in one day. She was eating alone too, since Ryu was running about with some guys he met. He always was good at making friends. So there she sat at the back of the classroom, headphones on her head, shutting out the world. It was a necessity at this point since all the other girls were pointing at her.

Of course she was the topic of gossip. She was a big thing in tabloids for a while. The first child of Risette and some mysterious, debonair kid from the boonies? You can bet the media went crazy about that.

She just quietly ignored them. It was easier that way.

There was one person that she couldn't ignore, however.

"-se me?" He said, waving his hand in front of Hikari's face. She pulled her headphones off her head and tried to give the guy her full attention. She was glad that she did.

He was pretty good looking, at least in Hikari's books. Cropped, Jet black, hair. Big, brown, eyes. She used to dream about guys like this. He was obviously quite a bit older too, maybe third year. The stubble on his long face had given that away very easily. His large eyes darted around, taking in Hikari before he spoke again.

"Hey…" Was all he said. Apparently, he was lost for words. Hikari wouldn't know, she was in a world of her own.

"Um, is Narukami-sensei around? I need to give him something from Yamada-sensei" he gestured to an A4 sized envelope tucked under his arm. Hikari glanced at it but was more focused on what was holding it. He wasn't muscular, as such, but quite lean. Like a runner. His height and fairly long legs also brought Hikari to that conclusion.

"Uh… H-He's not here right now, you could leave it on his desk?" Hikari suggested.

"I could… Or I could wait here with you until he gets back?"

Oh god, he was confident as well. It was astounding how many of Hikari's boxes this guy was ticking.

"Sure" Hikari said, playing it off like it was nothing.

"What's your name then?"

"Hikari"

"It's a pleasure to meet you" he smiled. "I'm Takeshi"

"Hi" She said, apparently introducing herself again.

"So…" He said, pulling a chair around from one of the nearby desks so he could sit down. This guy had no intention of leaving, it seemed. "What were you listening to just now?"

"Just a band" Hikari said 'Of course it's a band you idiot, what else would you be listening to?' She chastised herself inwardly on her awkward answer.

"Cool" He laughed softly.

'Hikari, you are so stupid it is unbelievable' she thought. 'He probably hates you now'

"So what's in the envelope?" She asked, trying to divert attention from her flailing.

"Oh, just some notes or something. Yamada didn't say, just that they were important. Knowing him, it's probably the 3-3 girl's measurements" he laughed a little at his own joke before carrying on. "So how are you finding Yasogami?"

"It's good…" Hikari lied. She didn't want to seem _too_ pathetic in front of this guy. "The rumours and gossip and stuff are a little annoying though…" She said, glaring at a group of three or so girls near the window of the classroom that had been stealing glances at her non-stop for the last 10 minutes.

"First day and you're already in the rumour mill? Nice going, Headphones"

'An endearing nickname? I _think_ that means he likes me?' She thought while smiling.

"Still, you hear all kinds of crazy things up on the third floor"

"Really?"

"Yeah, like 'So-or-so is pregnant' or 'Hosoi-sensei doesn't ever take his puppet off' or 'If you go to the shrine at midnight and stare at your watch on a stormy night you'll see the time you're going to die'"

"That last one is real?"

"The rumour definitely is, anyway. I can't say I've tried it" Takeshi said, shrugging.

It was at that moment that Narukami walked through the classroom door. The whole class fell silent as he did so. It was still Lunchtime after all, so it was somewhat out of the ordinary.

"Don't mind me" he smiled, taking a sip from a cup of coffee that he had brought with him.

Slowly, conversation picked up again.

"Well, I should give these to Narukami. Talk to you later, Headphones" He stood up and waved to Hikari, who weakly returned the gesture.

'He better talk to me later' she thought, still in a trance.

xxx

The rest of the day happened to be fairly uneventful. Hikari and Ryu went to Junes to get steak, she picked up a few groceries on the way home and that was that. It was just like any other day in sleepy Inaba.

When she walked through the front door, however, she saw a face she didn't think she'd see.

"Hey, Kari-chan!" Said a perky, excitable voice as she took off her shoes. To her surprise, her Aunt had come to visit. Her biological aunt.

"Aunt Nanako?" She said upon seeing her. Hikari had seen photos of Nanako when she was a kid, hanging out with her mom and dad. She hadn't really changed much aside from she was taller (Obviously) and her hair was longer. That and she'd traded that little pink dress for a police badge. Nanako's decision to follow her Dad's career couldn't have been an easy one, given how much stress it had caused her, but then again underneath the peppy young detective was the beating heart of a strong woman that would never back down. She just needed a little pressure applied to bring that out.

"What are you doing here?" Hikari said after putting her shopping down and rushing over to give her Aunt a big hug.

"Well your dad is supposed to be cooking something really good tonight so I thought I'd drop by" She smiled.

"Thank god" Hikari said, apparently a little too loud

"What was that, dear?" Her mother asked, from the kitchen, semi-serious.

"Nothing" Hikari giggled "How's work going, Nanako-san?"

"Exhausting" Nanako said. She was always very direct, that much was true. "They're running me ragged because I'm new, but other than that, pretty good. Chie-san is really putting me through the ringer" she laughed. "That and this case I'm working has got me up all hours of the night. I need to start finding something to do in the evenings though... Otherwise, I'll end up like Dad" Nanako lamented.

"You could always start dating someone, Nanako-chan?" Rise suggested as she came back into the living room, two cups of tea in her hand.

Nanako nearly fell off the sofa laughing.

After she calmed down, Nanako managed to sputter out an explanation for her outburst "Rise-chan, I've barely got my _own_ life together, I can't throw another person into the mix!"

"It wasn't that funny" Rise pouted

"It doesn't matter, anyway. I'm here tonight to eat my brother's cooking, so that's good enough for me"

"Where's Tatsuya?" Hikari asked her mother

"He's being held back after school today. Apparently he bit someone, so your dad's going to pick him up and give him a talking to on the way home. Just don't say anything, OK? He'll only get upset"

"OK" Hikari rolled her eyes at her little brother's antics. Would he ever straighten up?

It was at that moment that the front door opened and Yu walked in with Tatsuya behind him, like a dog with a tail between his legs. No signs of tears though.

Yu was like that. He would never, ever, yell at you. According to Rise, the only time she'd ever seen him shout was when Nanako was in the hospital and almost died. Hikari was never told the details of Nanako's illness, but apparently, neither did Nanako so she just let it lie.

After the greetings, Yu made his way to the kitchen to begin cooking that night's meal, with Nanako's help. Tatsuya had some homework so went upstairs straight away. This left Hikari and her mother alone in the living room, with the TV as background noise. Since nobody was talking, Hikari cast her mind back on the day's events… and kept focusing on one, specific, point.

"Mom?" Hikari asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah?" Rise responded, ready for whatever she was about to say

"Um… I need some advice… I think"

"What is it? Is school too stressful? Are you being stalked by the media? I _told_ Inoue-san to make sure they back off" Rise was getting flustered. Ever since she became a mother she'd been doing that more and more. Now, with baby number three on the way, she must be maternal overdrive. Hikari giggled at her mother's attitude before stepping in.

"No, it's nothing like that. See, there was this boy at school today and-"

"Oooh~" Her mother sang. Rise's tone had suddenly changed from concerned mother to high school gossip queen in the space of about three seconds. "Who is it? Is it that boy from middle school who took you to Aiya all the time?"

"I told you, it wasn't like that, we just both _really _like Chinese food" Hikari pinched the bridge of her nose as she recalled those dinners and the conversations with her parents that sparked from them.

"It's just this guy, alright? Anyway, he's like, my ideal guy, so what should I do?"

"Ask him out" Rise said, flatly

"It's really that easy?"

"That's what I did"

"You told me that Dad started going out with you when you fell, weeping, into his arms"

"Same thing" Rise laughed. "Just do whatever you think is best, honey, I'm _sure_ it'll work out. If I were you though, I'd let it settle a bit first. You only just met him" She smiled. Despite joking around, Rise did offer some good advice occasionally.

Hikari considered it. That was pretty much the only thing she _could_ do, so she went with it. After all, she didn't have the courage to ask him out and expecting him to take initiative could take forever.

"I'll do that" She smiled. "Thanks, Mom"

"It's OK, honey. Now come on, let's go pester your father" she giggled. Hikari couldn't help but smile and sigh. Her mother was unpredictable, but she loved her more than anyone else on earth.

xxx

"That. Was. Amazing."

Was the sentiment from everyone around the table, stuffed from Yu's hearty meal. Rustic, but bursting with flavour. Congratulations were given to the chef, and Nanako managed to avoid the cleaning by saying she had to cut out early since she had a hard day's work ahead of her the next day.

"Sorry!" She said as she hastened to put on her shoes. "Can I talk to Hikari about something really quick?"

Nobody seemed to have a problem with this, so the two went outside to speak in private. Once they got out there, Nanako's face suddenly turned quite serious.

"Hikari, have you heard any weird rumours at school recently?"

"Rumours?" Hikari asked, confused.

"Yeah, I'd ask your dad but I figure since you're a student you're probably more aware of it you know? No matter how crazy it sounds, I _need_ to hear it, OK?"

Hikari thought back on the day's events. Again, all she could really recall was her conversation with Takeshi… Not even the conversation, really, more he feelings of that conversation. There was that one thing he said though…

"Apparently, if you go to the shrine on a stormy night and look at your watch, you'll see the time of your death once it strikes midnight"

"I see…" Nanako said, tapping her chin with her finger. "What time is it now?"

"About 8:15, I think? Why, were you thinking of trying it out, Nanako-san?"

"Maybe… Thanks, Hikari" She said. Nanako looked at the sky. A dark cloud was rolling in… Hikari could practically hear the gears in her brain turning. There was no way that a stupid, pound-a-penny, schoolyard rumour like that could be in any way relevant. Right?

"Do me a favour, and don't tell your parents I asked you about this, OK? They'll start telling me to get out more" Nanako laughed, her normal demeanour returning.

"Sure" Hikari giggled along with her aunt. She really got along with Nanako. Maybe because they were young enough that they played together when they were kids, even if it was only for about a year before Nanako grew out of it. They were more like sisters than aunt and niece.

"I'll see you soon, Hikari" Nanako said, before hugging her niece tightly and disappearing into the night. Hikari simply stood there, smiling. She really didn't see enough of Nanako these days so having her presence there was appreciated. She hoped to see her aunt again.

And she would, just not in the way she expected…

xxx

Nanako had plenty of time to get back to her apartment and get ready before midnight. She had to at least look into this right? If there was any chance that this was connected to the case, she had to take it.

Nanako's apartment was fairly clean, almost atypical for a police officer as obsessed about a case as she was. The décor was very similar to that of her childhood home she lived in with her Uncle and Brother. She always meant to redecorate but couldn't bring herself to let go of the nostalgia.

God, she needed to grow out of that.

Nanako's hunch was right, those dark clouds brought a lot of rain and thunder. That had been happening a lot recently. She had to wonder why. She was no meteorologist, however, so she could only speculate. She would have to dig around for something warm and waterproof…

She was out the door before 11:30, this time however, she was armed. This was police business after all, she couldn't afford to go running headfirst into danger without some sort of weapon. She never was good with a gun. She'd often thought about it and wondered if she could even shoot another human being. It was more for intimidation, really. Words were Nanako's weapons.

Nanako arrived at the shrine with time to spare, around five minutes. She spent that time stood, stiff as a board, staring at the digital wristwatch she rarely used.

_11:56_

What was this feeling that was bubbling in the pit of her stomach? Anxiety? No, more visceral than that.

_11:57_

Fear? Impossible. Nanako did not get scared. Not anymore.

_11:58_

And yet, here she was. Every instinct told her to run, to bolt and just forget about it. Something, however, kept her rooted to the spot. Whatever it was it wasn't courage.

_11:59_

With a minute to go, Nanako finally found the word that compelled her to stay in this situation.

Duty.

_00:00_

She waited

_00:01_

Nothing? Really? In a way, Nanako was relived. After all, what did she expect? It was just a schoolyard rumour. However, the creeping feeling of fear could not be buried. Something was still going on. Seconds later, Nanako found out what.

_*Clap Clap Clap*_

Nanako heard the noise from behind her, but dare not turn her head to face it.

"Detective Nanako Dojima" said a voice. It was strange. Otherworldly, even. It lilted as it spoke, almost like a song. "What is it you fear most?"

"Nothing" Nanako said, almost instinctively.

The voice simply laughed. "So headstrong… Just like your father. No matter. We shall find out soon enough.

Nanako then felt something press against the back of her head. A cold, metallic, foreign object. It took Nanako a second to realise but then she figured it out.

It was a gun.

"Don't worry" the voice said. "This won't kill you" That statement did little to ease Nanako's fear.

"Face your Fears, Nanako Dojima"

Nanako's breathing had long since quickened, she couldn't think straight anymore. She had to get out of there. But now it wasn't duty binding her to where she stood. It was fear itself.

_*Bang*_

And with that, Nanako Dojima disappeared. Her whole existence blinked out. No body, no nothing. She no longer existed. At least in this world.

xxx

Nanako awoke, but not how she expected. She wasn't the twenty year old policewoman anymore, she was a little girl again. There was nothing here, all was darkness. The only corporal things on this plane were Nanako herself, some thick fog that swirled at her feet and, surprisingly, her brother. Again though, he looked sixteen again. There was one noticeable difference though. He looked angry. Not just that, disgusted.

"You let yourself get kidnapped" Yu spat at her.

"Big bro?" she asked, confused.

"You almost got me and your Dad killed. It's _your_ fault, Nanako"

"Big bro, why are you saying that?" She wanted to cry.

"I hate you, Nanako" Yu said before he turned around and walked away.

"Big bro?! Please don't leave! I'm sorry! Just please don't leave!"

Just like that, he was gone.

"You are a terrible person, Nanako" came a voice from behind her. She recognised it. It belonged to none other than her sister-in-law, Rise. "He saved your life and you squander it?"

"Rise-chan?" Nanako had started crying now. She couldn't take this abuse, not from the people she loved most.

"I hate you, Nanako" the redhead said before fading away, just like her husband.

Nanako dreaded who she'd see next. Apparently, this world gave her no quarter as it was the last possible things she wanted to hear.

"It's your fault that I'm dead, Nanako. If you hadn't been born, I'd still be alive. I'm gone and now your Dad hates you for it. _I _hate you for it, Nanako"

Through tear filled eyes, Nanako could only sputter one single syllable.

"Mom?"

xxx

_Meanwhile_

"Detective Dojima has been dealt with, brother"

"Excellent. Did she put up a fight?"

"No. It is just as you said. Fear keeps even the strongest of hearts in a cage, it seems"

"That's right. With Dojima gone, there will be nobody stopping us now"

"What of her brother?"

"Narukami? Leave him. He's old and weak now… His daughter on the other hand…"

"Brother, do you think that's wise? What if she overcomes, she is _his_ daughter after all"

"She has the potential, but not his powers. She is nothing compared to the Wild Card. Do not worry, brother, everything will go to plan. Just lure Hikari Narukami to the shrine next time it pours."

"By your order"

"If you have to, brother. Enter Gehanna with her. _Ensure_ she does not overcome"

"By your order"


	3. Chapter 3 - Prelude to Awakening

Persona 4- The Progeny

Chapter 3 – Prelude to Awakening

A/N: So this was actually supposed to be a lot longer. I'm splitting it into two though. I feel that the end to this one has a good ending point for a chapter :) Will have the next one up ASAP so I don't leave y'all longing for the next one XD Regardless, Enjoy :)

xxx

The whole Narukami household was tense. It had been three days since Nanako had apparently dropped off the face of the earth. Antisocial behaviour was not Nanako's MO. She would always at least call the family every day, just to see how everything was going. When she hadn't for two days on the trot, Yu had gone to visit her apartment. When he found her and some of her other possessions absent, he began to fear something had happened. After all, he was protective of his little sister.

Hikari though, tried not to let it get to her. Nanako was a police officer, this kind of thing happened sometimes. She was pretty tough, so she could probably handle it. Probably. Lunchtime was the worst though. She didn't have anything to pre-occupy herself with. That and the bespectacled goon that she called her best friend wouldn't shut up about it.

"Is she going to turn up safe and stuff?" Ryu asked while biting into a sandwich.

"Probably" Hikari said, tucking into some instant noodles. It was better than whatever it was her mother was cooking when she left the house that morning, that's for sure. "My aunt's tough, she'll be fine" She smiled weakly.

"If you say so…" Ryu said, unconvinced. He was like that. He always knew what you were really thinking and tried to help to the best of his ability. He was also an expert at putting his foot in his mouth.

"So I heard from some of the girls that you were talking to some third year guy a few days ago?"

"Really? People know about that?!" Hikari looked bout frantically.

"Yeah, you did it in the classroom in front of everyone"

"Oh god…" She stared into her bowl of food solemnly. The last thing she wanted was more rumours about her.

"Relax, everything's fine" Ryu assured her. "This isn't Middle School, nobody cares" he said as he leaned back in his seat.

"Rumours travel really fast here though… What if people think I'm a perv or something?"

"Nobody thinks that. Look at you! You're like over the top innocent" Ryu said in an attempt to placate her. Needless to say, it wasn't really working.

"Ugggh" She groaned, flinging her head back to stare at the ceiling.

"Look, its fine! I've had my ear to the ground and nobody's talking about you"

"For real?" Hikari said, bouncing back.

"Yeah, there's someone even more tragic than you, if you can believe that…" Ryu smirked. His pride was soon wounded however when Hikari flicked the nearest pen at his forehead. "Hey!" he said, rubbing his "wound".

"You were asking for it" Hikari said as she stuck her tongue out. "So who's this person they're talking about?"

"You know for someone who hates gossip, you really like to do it" Ryu simply shrugged before slyly pointing over to the window where a group of girls stood. "See those girls there? The blue haired one?"

Hikari glanced over to the group that Ryu was referring to and clapped her eyes on the girl with the blue hair. Her azure hair and eyes were the only really outstanding features about her. Everything else was distinctly average. Average height, average weight, average everything. The only other thing that struck Hikari was she was really pretty. Rivalling some of the most gorgeous third year girls. Her skin looked really smooth. That and it was paler than the moon…

"Hikari?" Ryu asked waving a hand in front of her face, snapping her out of the trance.

"Hmm?" She responded, instinctively.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking at the girl"

"Really? 'Cause you've got that look in your eye that you get when you watch that host anime"

Hikari knew well the show he was referring to. True, this girl was good looking, but Hikari was just admiring how pretty she was.

"It's not like that at all, I just think she looks nice"

"Well you're not the only one that thinks that. Like, three of the guys asked her out already and she turned all of them down. Her name's Atsuko Hirayama. All I heard is she's having a really tough time of it"

"She seems to be taking it well" Hikari commented as across the room Atsuko was laughing at some joke that her friend had just told.

"Yeah… Still, like it or not, _she's_ the centre of attention around here at the moment"

"That's good" Hikari sighed happily. It was good to know that she was still going relatively undetected.

"Well, after the Shrine rumours anyway" Ryu said, offhandedly.

"The Shrine Rumours?" Hikari repeated. There it was again, she couldn't get away from the whole haunted shrine thing recently.

"Oh come on, you have to have heard about it. Apparently you and your _boyfriend_ were talking about it"

"He's no- I- You don- I- Ican'tbelieveyou" Was all she could say before slamming her head into the desk and covering it with her arms.

"Aww, you _do _like him!" she heard Ryu say, albeit muffled by her arms.

"You're a jerk" Hikari said, wounded.

"Lay off her, guy." She heard a new voice from behind her, moreover it was a voice she recognized.

As she raised her head, she saw Takeshi's face and tall frame. She had to try her hardest not to blush.

"H-Hey…" She said meekly.

"Hey" he chuckled before looking over to Ryu. "Who's this, your boyfriend?"

Hikari had to bite her lip to stop herself from bursting out laughing. She'd never considered Ryu as a romantic partner. He was sweet, yes, but was more like a brother to her. After all, they'd known each other since they were children, it was kind of hard to stop seeing him like that.

"He wishes" Hikari giggled nervously.

"Hey, so, some of us were going to try out the Shrine thing tonight. It looks like a stormy one. You want to come?"

"Really?" Ryu piped up. "Sounds stupid and immature to me"

"Then you'll fit right in" Hikari bit back as if to say 'Back off. I got this'

"It'll be fine" Takeshi said, smiling. "and if anything spooky happens, I'll protect you" he added, with a wink.

This time Hikari couldn't resist blushing.

"She'd love to, but we have this big test in the morning and-" Ryu said before being cut off by Hikari's glare. If looks could kill, Ryu would have been dead several times over. He was just trying to look out for his friend, but he was doing it all wrong.

"I'll be there" she smiled.

"Cool" Takeshi said, beaming. "We're meeting up there at 11:50 tonight. See you later 'Phones" He said as he held his hand high while walking out of the classroom. Hikari simply smiled a small smile as she watched him go, her face still in full blush, before turning her attention to her idiot friend.

"What are you doing trying to ruin my chances with him?"

"I don't like him. It's just a gut feeling" Ryu said simply, folding his arms across his chest.

"Remember that time your gut told you that dog was dangerous?" Hikari said, referring to an incident from their childhood.

"… Yes…" Ryu said begrudgingly.

"And what did you end up doing with it?"

"We ran around Samegawa and played with it for four hours." He finally admitted.

"Mmhmm, so forgive me if I don't 100% trust your 'gut feelings'"

"Whatever. Enjoy your date with Tall, Dark and Lanky"

"I'd say more rugged, actually" Hikari laughed.

The rest of lunch was spent ribbing one another over various foibles of childhood.

xxx

Sneaking out of her room was super easy for Hikari. She'd been doing it since she was a kid, so she knew the best way to get out of it. If anything, her age had made it easier to get out since she could grab stuff more easily. At 11:50 on the dot, she met with Takeshi outside the shrine. And only Takeshi. As she approached him, shielding her face from the rain, she had to ask.

"So where's everyone else?"

"They couldn't make it" he sighed. "It sucks, but I guess it's just you and me tonight" he smiled.

She was conflicted about this. On one hand, she got to spend time alone with a cute guy. On the other, she was spending time alone with someone she barely knew. This would not do well for her anxiety. They passed the ten minutes at the shrine simply talking about anything and everything. During that conversation, she learned that he was (true to her suspicions) a track star. That and he enjoyed literature. Atypical, but intelligence was an alluring factor to Hikari.

_11:57_

"We should get ready, it'll be any second" Takeshi said, standing up and putting his back to the shrine exit.

Hikari hesitated.

"Do we have to do this? I mean we're having fun just talking…"

"Come on, once you've done it, you can say you have to everyone at school. It'll be cool! It takes like three seconds" he smiled. She couldn't resist when he smiled. She stood up and faced him, her back to the offertory box.

_11:58_

The young couple made sure their watches were set to the right time. Hikari couldn't shake this niggling feeling, however. What was this feeling? It was small at first, barely worth mentioning but as time marched on, she had to say something.

"I feel…" It took her a few seconds to articulate her thoughts properly. "Scared" she settled on. For some reason, every impulse in her body was telling her to run, yet she couldn't.

"It's OK" Takeshi said. He suddenly grasped Hikari's hand that was resting at her side, which caused her to gasp. He squeezed tightly. "Everything will be fine"

She could just about die from happiness and embarrassment in that moment. However, Fear was still mounting.

_11:59_

She was well and truly scared now, for some reason, she felt rooted to the spot out of sheer terror. What was this? They were just going to look at a clock, so why was she so frightened? Finally, the moment came.

_00:00_

Both of the kids looked at their watches but nothing happened. There was no change, no new numbers, nothing. That was it. Of course the rumours were false.

"Well, I guess that disproves that" Takeshi chuckled.

"Yeah" Hikari said, her breathing still quick from fear.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you're still sca-"

Takeshi didn't finish his sentence. His face contorted into a look of sheer terror. He was looking straight past Hikari at something over her shoulder. Whatever it was had caused the confident third year to become terrified.

"Takeshi?"

He said nothing, his lip simply quivered.

"Stop fooling around"

He then did something she didn't expect.

He turned around and bolted as fast as he could, out of the shrine and down the street. Before she could even think about going after him, she felt something cold and sharp press into the back of her head before hearing a mechanical click and five words.

"Face your Fears, Hikari Narukami"

_BANG!_

xxx

Before Hikari knew it, she was somewhere else, somewhere not of this world. There was nothing here. It was pure blackness. She could see nothing. The only sound was her whimpers of fear whenever she breathed out. After what seemed like an eternity, she finally spoke.

"H-Hello?" she said, shyly.

As if summoned by her word, she saw a group of girls in school uniforms emerge from the darkness, walking towards her. As they got closer, she heard their conversation.

"I heard that she's already slept with him"

"Get out"

"No, for real!"

"I thought she was a goody two-shoes, being the teacher's daughter and everything"

"Me too, guess we were wrong"

And then, they faded away into nothingness. Were those girls talking about her? Suddenly, a group of guys appeared behind her. She wouldn't have noticed if not for the raucous laughter that signalled their manifestation. One of them, she recognised as her best friend.

"Dude, don't bother" this version of Ryu said. "She's totally frigid, I've tried, believe me"

"She's hot though" said a nameless guy

"Yeah, I mean, damn, have you seen that body?"

"And those curves, man"

"I bet being Risette's Daughter, she's learned a few things"

"What I wouldn't give to get with her…"

They faded off, leaving her confused. What was this? Why are these groups of people appearing?

Suddenly, Takeshi appeared in front of her, surrounded by girls. All of them were laughing at what he was saying.

"She was all like 'I'm so scared!' she's such a coward" He laughed

"Do you even _like _her?" one of the girls asked.

"She's so annoying! I can't deal with the whole shy girl routine. You know, I hear she puts that on just so people treat her better" Takeshi said before fading off into nothingness.

More and More groups of people started appearing. With more gossip about her.

"I heard she hates her parents"

"I heard that the only reason she likes music is because she hates people"

"She's so mean to Ryu-kun!"

"She's literally the worst"

All of it, was too much. It got louder and more raucous. More rumours, more painful barbs being slung at her. She couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to cry. She didn't know why she was here. Is this what life was now? Abuse? Soon, the noise was a cacophony. She couldn't even hear herself think. Eventually, she broke down, clutched her knees and started to sob, vigorously. She would give anything to have someone get her out of here.

"-ri!"

She heard something then. She snapped her eyes open and tried to locate that sound through the din of insults. She had to find it. Turns out she didn't need to. It found her.

It was a voice. A voice she'd heard since as long as she could remember. The tone was exactly as she remembered too. The word she'd use to sum it up?

Commanding.

"IZANAGI!"

She heard the voice yell above all else, and once he did it all stopped. She saw a massive steel blade appear as if from nowhere, plunging into the darkness from the outside and tearing downwards. As it did so, light spilled in from the outside. This wasn't all there was. When the blinding wore off, she saw it. A huge creature, clad in a trench coat, helmet and large, blade like shoes, towered above her. It slightly hovered from the ground and swung its massive sword (that looked more akin to a girder) around back to its side before it too, disappeared. Standing where the massive creature's feet was a small creature, wearing a ridiculously colourful bear costume and the one person she wanted to see more than anything right now. Her father.

"Hey, sweetie. I guess I have some explaining to do"

xxx

_Meanwhile_

"Hikari Narukami has been cast inward"

"I see. Did you have to pressure her?"

"No… Someone else did my job for me"

"I see… Fate has a strange way of working. Regardless, everything has worked out for the best"

"Yes… about that"

"What is it, brother?"

"The Wild Card saw us. He's gone in after her"

"…"

"Brother?"

"No matter. This is trivial. He will not stay, he knows we'll be looking for him and his."

"But what if he rescues his daughter?"

"Then we kill her. If we cannot stop a teenage girl and an old teacher, then we are worthless. Besides, they are trapped. If we don't get them, Gehanna certainly will."

"Of course. What action should we take now?"

"Let me reflect on that. There are many who would make suitable candidates."

"Of course"

"In the meantime however, continue to spread the word. As far and wide as you can."

"By your order"


	4. Chapter 4 - I am Thou

Persona 4- The Progeny

Chapter 4 – I am Thou…

A/N: Sooo… Did you see the new P5 trailer? I did. It was pretty fucking awesome, ngl :D Will definitely do some P5 stuff once it's out and I've played it a whole bunch of times :D (I'm already getting ideas, and we've had one trailer, ffs -_-) For now, enjoy a chapter that I had trouble finishing XD Regardless, Enjoy :)

xxx

"D-Daddy?!"

Hikari was surprised to see her father standing there, in this world of nightmare world. Not only that, but flanked by what appeared to be a circus bear and a giant, trenchcoat wearing badass. Light poured in behind him, illuminating him like some sort of messiah.

She definitely wasn't angry at her dad's sudden appearance however.

She ran over towards where he stood and, once she reached him, wrapped him into a hug. As she burrowed her head into his chest, he simply petted her long, auburn, hair.

"I was so scared…" she mumbled.

"I know, sweetie" Yu lamented as he looked over his daughter's shoulder into the blackness from whence she came before turning to the bear with him. "Are you picking up anything in there?"

The bear sniffed before wildly gesturing panic. "There's something really powerful forming in there, Sensei!" it screamed in a familiar voice.

Yu let go of his daughter, instead grabbing hold of her shoulders, dropping to her level and looking her dead in the eye.

"Sweetheart, I know you're scared right now but something bad's about to happen. You need to know that what you see in there _is_ real. It _can _hurt you. I'm going to do everything I can to stop it, but that alone won't be enough. You need to accept it. Understand?"

"Daddy, you're not making sense…" Hikari said, her voice still quivering with fear. She took mental note that she'd started calling her father 'Daddy' since seeing him in this place. She rationalized it as her fear-stricken state taking over.

"It'll all become clear soon. Trust me. Stay here with Teddie, OK?"

"I'll protect you, Kari-chan!" The bear said, puffing out it's chest.

Suddenly, with the dropping of a nickname from the bear, she realized who it was under the bear suit.

"Uncle Teddie?!"

"The one and only! Your dad's gonna beat up the Shadow, so just let me take care of you until he does!"

Yu let go of his daughter and stepped past her into the dark void that he found her in. He then started speaking to the darkness.

"I know you're in here, so come on out so we can get this over with"

"But everyone hates me, _Daddy_!" A voice said, permeating the silence from this otherworldly place. The voice sounded similar to Hikari's but subtly different. The tone was off, for one. It sounded bitter and resenting. On top of that, the actual pitch sounded weird. It was almost as if someone else were talking at the same time. Albeit someone with a much deeper, sinister, voice.

"I don't hate you… Come out. We need to talk, Hikari" Yu said, calmly.

This left Hikari… confused, to say the very least. Why was he addressing that voice as if it were his daughter? _She_ was his daughter, not that voice. That perception was soon shattered as from the darkness, a figure emerged. Wispy tendrils of darkness still clung to it as it walked closer and closer toward her father. It wasn't until it got very close that she recognized it. It was the spit and image of Hikari herself. Her slender frame, her auburn hair, her school uniform, her pale skin. All of it, save her eyes. Hikari's eyes were grey, a trait inherited from her father. The Copy's were vastly different and glowed a bright orange. The overall effect was very unsettling.

"Dad? What is that?" Hikari asked, gesturing to the darker copy.

"I'm _you_" The doppelganger replied. "I don't know what I am outside of that. Am I the 'Teacher's Pet'? Am I 'Daddy's Little Girl'? Am I a whore like people say I am? What _am _I? What do I want to be? I don't know!"

"I don't think like that…" Hikari said, looking her double right in the amber eyes.

"Yes you do, stupid. Because you're me. We think exactly the same. Deep down, anyway"

"I know what I am" Hikari's fear had eased. She almost made that declaration with confidence. Almost.

"No I don't!" It said, laughing a little at Hikari's attempt to be brave. "I'm just some blank, boring girl that can't decide what she wants to be in life! _Someone_ tell me what to be!" The double cried, to nobody.

"STOP IT!" Hikari shouted, rage building inside her from seemingly nowhere. "I know what I am!" she repeated, this time with actual confidence. The other Hikari simply smirked.

"Hikari…" Teddie said from behind her. He'd seen this before. Yu simply raised a hand to silence him.

"She has to do this" was all he said.

"You're. Not. Me." Hikari said, punctuating each word with a step towards her mirror image. By the end of the sentence, she was right up in her face.

The other Hikari started to chuckle, then giggle and then laughing whole heartidly, like a maniac. "You're right!" she yelled, her laughter becoming more frequent and obnoxious. "I'm _not_ you! I'm a _better_ Hikari Narukami! I know _exactly _what I am!"

A black-purple energy started emanating from the body of the other Hikari, her laughter becoming more hysteric by the second. The darkness spewing from her became more erratic and wild.

The real Hikari wanted to run away. She very almost did if it weren't for her father's hand on her shoulder. He looked stoic in the face of the danger, never once taking his eyes off the clone of his daughter. She saw something behind his gaze. She had looked into his eyes many times growing up. Most of the time, they were the eyes of a father. Kind and caring, but also stern when they needed to be. Today, however, Hikari saw a meaning in her father's eyes that she had never seen before or since. To her, they looked like a lake. Placid and calm on the surface, but underneath, they were teeming with energy that a normal person might never see.

These were the eyes of a hardened warrior.

The copy of Hikari started contorting wildly, her arms and legs going asunder. There was no pattern to this movement, just a macabre "dance". That and her unceasing laughter. Then, without warning, there was a brilliant flash of light. Hikari shut her eyes tight to shield herself from it. Yu, did not. This was something he'd seen a few times before, even if it is something he'd rather soon have forgotten.

"Hikari. Look at it." Yu said, squeezing his daughter's shoulder tightly.

When she opened her eyes, her copy was gone. In its place was something… else. Standing before her was a figure roughly eight feet tall and floating a couple of feet off the ground. The thing was clad in armour, not dissimilar to a Spartan warrior. The armour was not shiny, like Hikari had seen in books and stuff however, but was dark and rusted. The overall effect made it look really old. There were holes in it, as well, from which clouds of darkness was spewing. The large plume on top of the figure's head was made of bristles like in pictures, but instead of being the traditional red, it was purple, and swirling with the same dark energy. A large, golden polearm and shield were at each of the creature's arms. Hikari's eye, however, was drawn to the face. The skin was the exact same tone as Hikari's. Her long, red, hair shot out of the back of the helmet as well. However, the face was completely devoid of features. Completely blank. Yet somehow, it still spoke.

"I am a Shadow, The True Self" It said, in spite of having no mouth. "I _will_ carve my own destiny. And _you_ are the only thing standing in my way"

Yu sprang into action. His hand darted into his pocket and like lightning pulled something out of it, moving back to his face. Once his hand moved back down to his side, Hikari saw they were a pair of black rimmed glasses. The right lens was slightly cracked, but Yu didn't seem to care.

"Teddie!" he shouted as he shot his hand back towards his ursine companion. Teddie knew what this meant and handed him something. Hikari's eyes grew wide once she saw that it was a large, two-handed sword. Once he had a firm grasp on it, Yu brought his hand to his face. Seemingly from nowhere, a navy blue card materialised and floated just above the palm of his hand. His expression was fierce. This whole time, he had been a coiled spring. Now, performing all sorts of actions that didn't make a lick of sense to the confused Hikari at lightning fast speeds. One thing was left. Yu made a fist around the card that had appeared in front of his face moments ago and shouted a single word…

"Persona!"

As he unclenched his hand, shards of blue glass fell to the ground. As they did so, a light of the same colour began to glow brightly from behind Hikari's father. Slowly but surely, that light started to move and change, giving itself a form. The large trenchcoat, the girder-like sword, the blades on the feet. It was the same creature that had saved Hikari from this wretched place. And her father was controlling it, it seemed.

With that, Yu leapt forwards at unbelievable speeds, sword at his side, and the trenchcoat creature followed him. He was sprinting directly at this… thing that stood in front of them with absolutely no fear in his eyes. He thrust his free hand forward and the trenchcoat figure flew forward even faster. Once it got closer to the Spartan-esque monster, it swung its sword directly at it. The Spartan blocked deftly, and reached out with its spear, which Yu's monster swiftly evaded.

Yu had long since stopped running at this point and moved his hand again. As if obeying some sort of mental command, the Trenchcoat creature pulled back and raised its sword above its head. Suddenly and sharply, electricity shot from the tip of the blade that it was carrying and fired directly towards the Spartan. It was a direct hit, slamming into the right arm of the creature and blowing off some of its armour. More of that dark cloud spilled out of it. As it did so, the monster produced a blood-curdling, ungodly, screech of agony.

"Teddie! I need a scan!" Yu shouted over the din.

With that, Teddie snapped to attention. He started… sniffing. It was odd, at the very least to the already extremely confused Hikari, but he seemed so focused on it, that it must have been important.

"Sensei! That Shadow's weak to your electrical attacks. Blow off all of its armour and then the rest'll take care of itself!" Teddie yelled to the Hikari's saviour. Yu simply nodded and then stretched his hand out again. Hikari had to speak up at this point. Confusion had replaced her fear long ago. Perhaps the bear would have answers. As her father's monster circled and dodged wild lance flailing, Hikari turned to Teddie.

"Uncle Teddie, what the hell is going on?! Dad shows up, summons a monster from nowhere and now you're talking about 'Shadows'"

"T-This really isn't the time, Kari-chan!" Teddie said, a look of shock on his face.

"Teddie, please! Tell me!"

"Kari. I promise we'll tell you everything once the Shadow is dealt with. OK?" Teddie said half demanding and half pleading.

In the time that Hikari and Teddie had had their short argument, Yu's trenchcoat monster had already blown off most of the armour of the Spartan. It was squirming in pain on the ground now, barely able to make token efforts to swing its lance about at the much faster creature, zipping about and casting lightning at it. Yu made one more hand gesture, this time, a fist. His thrall obeyed the silent order as it primed its sword and flew at breakneck pace towards the creature, dodging it's lance 'attacks' and finally plunging it's blade into the writhing mass of darkness for the mortal blow. The Shadow stopped moving. The darkness faded away as quickly as it had arrived. All was left was the clone of Hikari, lying on the floor breathing heavily.

Yu walked over to the defeated girl and helped her stand up, letting her rest against him. Neither of them said a single word. Yu simply gestured for his daughter to come forward and she did so. His was the only voice of reason anymore. Teddie followed slightly behind. The girl that was resting against her father had lost of all its bravado. It now stood there, silent, staring at Hikari with its big, gold eyes.

"Hikari. You need to accept that this is part of you. You need to tell it that you don't know what you are"

"B-but!" Hikari opened her mouth to protest but then started thinking about it. She didn't really know what she was supposed to be. Was she the shy, awkward, girl that sat at the back of the class? Was she a teacher's pet? Was she a gossip girl? What was she going to do in the future? She'd given it no thought. Maybe this thing had a point. She didn't want to admit it though. Not in front of her own father.

"It's OK" Yu said, with a smile. "It won't change my opinion of you. You're still you"

"I…" Hikari's breath caught in her throat a little. "I guess… you have a point. I don't know who I'm supposed to be. I keep trying to be so many different people that I don't know who I should be… And that scares me. Maybe I need to just learn to live with that…"

The other Hikari simply nodded before fading away in that pale blue light that she had seen earlier. In her place floated a card, almost identical to the one her father crushed not a few minutes ago.

"Take it" Yu instructed.

Hikari was doubtful about this whole thing. What would happen if she took the card? Needless to say, she was so confused that if Yu had told her to eat the card she probably would in the vauge hope that it would get them out of there. Hikari reached out and took the card in her right hand. As soon as she did so, however, it disappeared. All of a sudden, a splitting headache overcame Hikari. It was as if someone was literally tearing her head apart. Her hands clutched at her temples in an attempt to make the pain stop as she fell to her knees. Then, something unexpected happened. She heard a voice, and it was new, one she'd never heard before.

"_I am thou... Thou art I... From the sea of thy soul, I come. I am the daughter of Cybele and the bringer of Courage. Alke!"_

Once the voice stopped, so did the pain. It was instantaneous, as if there was never any pain there to begin with. Hikari simply rose, even more confused.

"It's alright" Yu smiled. "Now, we can explain everything"

Yu told Hikari of his year in Inaba. How he moved here when he was seventeen. Of the murder of Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi. He told her how he dove into the TV and of how he acquired the mysterious power called Persona and of mysterious creatures called Shadows. He rectified the lies he told her about how he met her various Uncles and Aunts over the years (Lies he spun in order to protect her). He also told her about how he saved her mother's life, and that's how they met. He told her of courier that almost got Nanako killed, and of a police detective that went rouge. Finally, he told her about how he and his friends saved the world from certain destruction. He also told her about how he followed her out of the house, since he was worried about her after what happened with Nanako. He spoke of the man that shot her in the head and how Yu beat him up, took his gun and transported himself and Teddie here with little effort and of how he managed to find Hikari once he was here. "Father's Intuition" was the only answer he gave.

"Now, it seems something else is happening with Shadows. And it's up to _you_ to deal with it." Yu said firmly.

"Me?!" Hikari asked, shocked. "But I don't have any experience in battle!"

"Neither did I" Yu chuckled. "Just try it. You'll be surprised. When your Persona awakens, you gain access to a lot of subconscious knowledge"

"I don't have a Persona, though"

"You do" Yu said, sighing as he pointed out what he thought was painfully obvious. "When you took that Tarot Card, you awakened your Persona, and all the knowledge that comes with it. For instance, I bet you know how to evoke it, despite never having done so before?"

"Now that you mention it…" Hikari said. She _did_ realise now how her dad summoned his Persona. She kind of just instinctively knew how to do it for herself.

"Exactly"

"Dad, do I really _have_ to do this? I mean, what if this is just a fluke? What if it's nothing?" Hikari asked. It was a valid question, in her defense. There was no murders going on in the town, no weird fog or anything.

"Hikari, you need to do this. Trust me, if Shadows are involved, it's bad. And we can't have people getting shot in the head and taken to…" Yu gestured to the empty space around him "Wherever this is…"

"But, I don't have a team or backup or anything. How can I deal with this? I mean, can't you or Aunt Chie or someone come and help me out?"

"We can't…" Yu lamented. "I wish we could, sweetheart, but we have jobs and lives and commitments. Yukiko has to run the inn pretty much 24/7. Naoto's in Europe for whatever reason. Your mother's got a baby on the way… That and if we start running around at night, whoever's behind all this will notice. A pregnant housewife, a teacher, a veteran cop and a Junes Manager all going to the shrine at night looks pretty suspicious… If _high schoolers_ were doing it, however, nobody would care. You'd hide in plain sight. Anyway, You have Teddie for backup" Yu said, gesturing to his friend has he puffed out his chest.

"My nose never lies, Kari-chan! I'll be your backup!" Teddie said, swelling with pride.

"And" Yu interrupted. "I think I know where we can find you a teammate…"

"Who?" Hikari asked.

"Well, a Veteran police officer like Chie might draw attention but a new recruit is something else. Besides, they say 'Family makes the best company' right?"

xxx

"Brother. I have some… disturbing news"

"What is it?"

"Hikari Narukami has overcome her fears… She has a Persona."

"…"

"Brother, I assure you tha-"

"What of Detective Dojima?"

"She's still there"

"Hikari will head there next. Ensure that the Shadows take her out first"

"By your order"

"Brother?"

"Yes?"

"See that you do not fail. There will be severe consequences if you do"

"But, broth-"

"…"

"B-by your order. Brother."


End file.
